On The Timothy Brook's Study Of Gentry Society In Late Ming China

Timothy Brook is a sinologist who is attracting attention from more and more scholars both in and outside China. Brook's focus includes Ming Dynasty of China. < The Confusions of Pleasure: Commerce and Culture in Ming China > won Best Works on Sinology of Levinson Prize of America in 2000, which is the top prize in Sinology study of AAS. Brook is very interested in gentry and gentry society in Ming Dynasty, and his studies can be found in works and papers among which is the prominent one. He analysis public domain by donation of gentry to Buddhism. He points that the publicity of gentries renders them the ability to play the role of local administrative besides the central government. Gentry's' society is similar to public domain in the west. The communication of gentry's needs a pubic location and thus temples become their destination. Buddhism in late Ming Dynasty accelerates the formation of gentry society and remodels the society. And this formation proves the separation between country and society in late Ming Dynasty. This thesis includes two chapters. Chapter one started from orientation of gentry, duality of gentry and gentry's' donation to Buddhism. We discuss preparation for public domain and points that he does not fully grasp the relationship between gentry, gentry's society and Buddhism. Chapter 2 talks about P's shortage in study of gentry's society by public domain in view of the definition and background and usage in Sinology of public domain. In conclusion, a proper discussion about "Country-society" model is discussed. This research support growing study of P in China, it represents the viewpoint of "China being the centre", but more or less complies with western way of study.